Home > Archives > The Alliance to Improve Emory Village is now Emory Village Alliance (EVA)

The Alliance to Improve Emory Village is now Emory Village Alliance (EVA)

(Oct. 12, 2014) For more than a dozen years, the partnership of Emory Village, surrounding neighborhoods, and Emory University has successfully shepherded major improvements in traffic control, pedestrian safety, and economic viability in the commercial district.

The Alliance has worked closely with DeKalb County on street improvements, a zoning overlay, and design guidelines for future development within the Village. It has raised almost $100,000 to create and maintain Emory Village Plaza and fountain, which has become a welcome gathering spot for the entire community.

The funds were also used to install benches, trash cans and bike racks, as well as plant more trees throughout the Village. While there’s more work to be done, EVA chair David Payne says the Alliance board voted recently to shorten the name to reflect its evolving nature and mission.

“Over the years, we’ve clearly lived up to the ‘Improve’ in our previous ‘Alliance to Improve Emory Village’ name. EVA is now the primary connecting point for the residential, academic, and business communities, starting new traditions like Streets Alive DeKalb,” Payne says. “This year for the first time, the Village was a trolley stop during the Druid Hills Tour of Homes, during which EVA sponsored jazz in the plaza and talks in several restaurants about home improvement, landscaping, and historic renovation.”

In recent years, business collaboration has also grown. Today village businesses are co-sponsoring events and promotions and seeking common solutions to ongoing challenges, such as parking and accessibility. With the Village as its “front door,” Emory continues to be an important partner, sharing the community’s interest in having a viable business center in which to dine, shop and play.

EVA is also looking beyond its borders to provide more connectivity to nearby amenities such as Burbanck Park.